Brad Rowe: The Art + Science Behind Memorable Tourism Experiences
Episode Description
In this episode, Carmen is joined by Brad Rowe, a tourism consultant with deep experience across product development, infrastructure, and destination management.
We explore his journey from growing up in New Zealand to working on major tourism projects in Queenstown and internationally, including large-scale gondola and chairlift developments.
Brad shares practical insights on experience design, what actually drives return on investment in tourism, and how operators can create moments that guests remember and share.
What You’ll Take Away From This Episode
What “experience design” really means in a tourism context
How visitor experience directly links to revenue and ROI
Behind-the-scenes insights into major Queenstown tourism developments
The shift from employment to consulting in the tourism industry
What separates average experiences from truly memorable ones
Why operational detail matters just as much as big ideas
About Brad Rowe
Brad Rowe is a tourism consultant and the founder of Tourism x Design, where he helps tourism businesses and destinations create innovative visitor experiences.
With more than 15 years in the visitor economy, Brad has worked across tourism development, infrastructure, and destination strategy - helping launch new tourism concepts, scale visitor experiences, and support destinations to build more resilient tourism economies.
The career path he followed was not a conventional one - he took some leaps of faith and rode some waves of tourism growth in mountain biking, chairlifts, tech and destination management.
Today he works as an independent advisor focused on experience design, product development, and commercial strategy.
Connect With Brad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brad-rowe-nz/
Organisations Referenced
Brad Rowe Website: https://bradrowe.me/
Skyline: https://skylineenterprises.co.nz/
University of Otago: https://www.otago.ac.nz/
Maverick Tourism: https://maverick-tourism.com/
Doppelmayr Group: https://www.doppelmayr.com/en/
Tourism Bay of Plenty: https://www.bayofplentynz.com/
Watershed Lake Sauna Queenstown: https://watershedsaunas.com/
Episode Chapters
00:00 – Introduction and guest welcome
01:53 – Queenstown’s unique appeal and personal stories
02:44 – Travel habits and early influences
04:38 – Childhood and education path
07:47 – Choosing tourism as a career
10:42 – Early career and internship experience
15:20 – Skyline Queenstown and mountain biking development
20:28 – Gondolas, chairlifts, and infrastructure expansion
24:24 – International projects and Austrian partnerships
30:29 – Transition to consulting
35:20 – Tourism product development and destination management
37:49 – Visitor experience and ROI
47:22 – Final thoughts and industry advice